Summary

  • Evening Star Studio laid off six employees due to industry volatility.
  • Layoffs in gaming industry affect big companies and indie studios alike.

The developer of Penny's Big Breakaway, Evening Star Studio, has announced that it has laid off six employees due to "volatile" conditions in the gaming industry. Penny's Big Breakaway is a 3D platformer made by the former developers of Sonic Mania. Penny's Big Breakaway was developed using Evening Star Studio's proprietary Star Engine and was published by Private Division.

Evening Star was at one point in consideration to work on a potential follow-up to Sonic Mania. However, due to Evening Star being busy and wanting to work on an original IP, plans for a Sonic Mania 2 fell through. As a result, Sega and Sonic Team collaborated with Arzest to develop Sonic Superstars, while Evening Star focused on Penny's Big Breakaway. While Penny's Big Breakaway was successful, the studio has also been affected by the gaming industry's volatile conditions, as six employees were recently let go from the indie developer.

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Evening Star Chief Technology Officer Hunter Bridges announced the layoffs on Twitter, followed by a post on LinkedIn by CEO Dave Padilla. Both executives lamented that they wished they didn't need to announce layoffs to the studio, with Bridges saying that it wasn't a choice they wanted to make. Padilla noted that due to the developer failing to secure a project in order to keep the team together, Evening Star Studio has been affected by the same volatile conditions that have affected its peers across the gaming industry as a whole, having to let go six employees.

Penny's Big Breakaway Developer Lays Off Six Employees

Bridges and Padilla stressed this was a hard decision and that they didn't want to let go of some of the people they worked with on Penny's Big Breakaway, including 3D artists, gameplay engineers, designers, and a producer. Padilla and Bridges said the people they had to let go of were extremely talented, and they are currently doing their best to help them find work elsewhere.

Layoffs have become more common in the video game industry in the last few years, as big companies like Microsoft, Sega, and EA cut down their numbers throughout 2024. Microsoft laid off 650 people from its gaming division earlier this September, which includes corporate and support positions from Activision Blizzard. Microsoft in particular has been laying off several people from its various studios after the acquisition of Activision Blizzard last year, which includes the likes of Crash Bandicoot developer Toys for Bob, and Call of Duty support studio Sledgehammer Games. Even smaller indie studios like Evening Star have been affected by the industry's turbulent times. As of September, more than 13,000 developers and publishers have lost their jobs in the gaming industry.

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Penny's Big Breakaway Tag Page Cover Art

Penny's Big Breakaway
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Platformer
Action
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Systems
super greyscale 8-bit logo PC-1 PlayStation-1 Xbox-1
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Top Critic Avg: 78 /100 Critics Rec: 63%
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Released
February 21, 2024
ESRB
E for Everyone
Developer(s)
Evening Star
Publisher(s)
Private Division
Engine
Retro Engine, Star Engine
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WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
PHYSICAL
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Ready. Set. YO! - Join Penny & Yo-Yo in a kinetic 3D-platformer bursting with innovative gameplay! Showcase your catalog of tricks and chain impressive combos to deliver Penny & Yo-Yo's perfect breakout performance. Take the stage with this vibrant pair in Penny’s Big Breakaway.
Penny is a street performer with big dreams; she has her own spin on what it takes to be a star! When Eddie the Emperor calls for new Palace Court Performers, Penny gets herself tangled in an audition she’ll never forget. A strange encounter with a Cosmic String transforms Penny’s Yo-Yo into a living creature with an appetite for snacks— and mayhem! Use Yo-Yo to help Penny clear her name, outrun the Emperor’s penguin army, and unravel the mystery of the Cosmic String.
Burst onto the scene in the fluorescent world of Macaroon, home to this over-and-under escape! Discover your true star power in this easy-to-play, difficult-to-master challenge. Penny’s Big Breakaway is the debut title from Evening Star.
Key Features:
Walk the Dog: Yo-Yo’s big appetite will earn an even bigger reward with snack power-ups! Use these tasty treats to temporarily transform Yo-Yo, granting it the abilities to improve movement speed, protect Penny from harm, and much more!
Around the World: Flee from Eddie the Emperor’s massive penguin army as they chase you clear across the planet! These clumsy flightless birds patrol the halls, come bursting through walls, and will stop at nothing to seize you! Help out friendly denizens along the way and make use of your spectacular surroundings to evade your capturers.
Encore Stage: Play your way with multiple game modes! Show off your skills as you chain awesome combos and rack up multipliers in Story Mode. Take on the ultimate speedrunning challenge and dominate the leaderboard in Time Attack Mode. Redeem coins for bonus items, secret stages, and more unlockable extras.

Platform(s)
PC, Xbox One X, Xbox One S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch
Genre(s)
Platformer, Action
How Long To Beat
7 Hours